Well, in part it’s because of what occurred this past weekend. If you weren’t paying attention, a stellar 1988 BMW 535i came up on Bring a Trailer. It was probably the most impressive older 5-series I’ve seen in a long time. So it was expected to bring pretty big numbers when the auction closed, and like looking through the picture gallery, it didn’t fail to disappoint. The final bid was $50,000 – unfathomable to this point for most of the E28 lineup.

Admittedly, the example I have today isn’t as nice. But it shares many things in common. First, it’s not a top-flight model, though again the Eta motor isn’t what many would prefer. So what does it have going for it?

A few months ago I checked out a 1989 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC AMG Widebody that had everything and a price tag to match. Today’s car is styled similarly, but unlike that 560SEC, this one doesn’t have the same punch and thankfully no where near the same price tag. This is a 1983 Mercedes-Benz 500SEL. You are probably asking right now ”This is an AMG car, right?” Well, not really. See, this is a really nice European-spec 500SEL with some AMG body parts, AMG wheels and an AMG steering wheel. You might of noticed I left out the part about a massive engine. This car looks every bit the part of a really good pre-merger AMG car, but without the heart. The thing is, I’m totally fine with that.

I focus a lot on the final model in the 928 line, the GTS. For good reason: as the final evolution of the model’s 17 year run the GTS is a very attractive car that brings with it the highest levels of performance and refinement that we covet so dearly in any GT.

However, they also can be very expensive. So for the Grand Tourer on a budget we need simply to turn the clock back a little and look at one of the early 928s. From there prices become much more reasonable. Which brings us to this: a Black 1983 Porsche 928 S, located in Missouri, with an interesting Berber cloth/tan leather interior and 76,161 miles on it. 1983 was the first year of the S for the US market and along with some minor aesthetic evolution it brought with it an increase in displacement from the original 4.5 liter V8 to a 4.7 liter V8. Naturally power was up slightly as well to 234 hp. This one also is equipped with a 5-speed manual.

Over the last few weeks, we’ve gotten to see the rewards of a new trend in water-cooled Volkswagens. For a long time, years if not decades in fact, if you wanted a clean A1-up chassis your only hope was that you’d stumble across an unknowing candidate. But the advent of the internet and a greater appreciation for 1980s automobile designs has finally resulted in a market where it’s become possible to restore these cars and not (entirely) lose your shirt. What does that look like? Well, we’ve seen some lightly restored Sciroccos bring pretty good money:

But what about the heavy-hitter from Volkswagen? The GTI has name recognition outside of the brand; heck, even outside of European cars. Guys with Camaros and Ram Trucks know what a GTI is. They may not like it, but often I think they respect the hot hatch. As a result, outside of mega-clean Sciroccos and camper vans, GTIs have generally been the best bet for bringing strong money at an auction and if you were hoping for a resto-flip, it’s the likely candidate to choose to come out on top:

Normally a Paint-to-Sample 930 would get my heart all aflutter, but this one, while indeed PTS, doesn’t quite stir my emotions quite as much. The reason should be obvious: that rare paint-to-sample color is black metallic, not exactly the most unusual choice along the spectrum. There aren’t a lot of black metallic 930s out there relative to its non-metallic black counterparts so even if the color doesn’t seem particularly rare it’s not very common either. But still, I was surprised to find out this was Paint-to-Sample.

With that bit of confusion out-of-the-way this is still a pretty nice looking 930. As those familiar will realize immediately, this is a RoW model since the 930 was not available in the US in 1983. The mileage is pretty low at 48,410 and it appears to be in excellent condition.

Like anyone, I love rare and interesting colors. So when I saw this 1983 Mercedes-Benz 380SL in the great China Blue, I just had to take a closer look. Upon taking that closer look, things got even better when I found out this car was a federalized European specification car. From there, it got even more interesting, but maybe not for the best…

VIN Number: WDB10704512000498
498th 380SL off the assembly line
Ultra rare factory optioned China blue paint (color code 934)
True grey market import european version
Owned by German Mechanic and maintained to highest standard
158,800 Kilometers (About 98,700 miles)
Functioning Vacuum headlight adjustments and working clock on the gauge cluster
Dry, Rust free, Accident free Car
$8,000 spent in professional rebuild of a Mercedes 420 engine with the original euro 380 heads (the 380 heads have bigger valves and mechanical idle system with no idle computer.) This solves the 380s issue of being underpowered. It is now very responsive, yet still nimble and light. Giving the car 215HP vs 185HP (380SL). Just as powerful as the 500SL. The car was previously owned by German Auto in Phoenix, the largest independent Mercedes mechanic shop west of the Mississippi. The shop owner personally rebuilt the engine and spared no expense. This car has power!!!!
$25,000 in records dating back to 1983 when it was sold new in Scottsdale, AZ by Young Motorcars. Original loan documents, purchasing agreement, and sale documents included along with the other stack of records. Over $3000 in work in 2017 alone.
Ice cold AC
New kenwood head unit
Clean Arizona Title
Located in San Diego, CA
Overall this is an amazing car.

I said I wanted to look a some cheaper Porsches this week and now I’m finally getting around to that. As is many times the case that means checking out a 911SC. While not every 911SC is inexpensive – last week’s Talbot Yellow Coupe being a prime example – the majority of them lie very much on the value side of the air-cooled spectrum. Once we move away from the very-low mileage examples our choices expand a good bit. They’re also fantastic cars! I don’t want to say the 911SC was the savior of the 911, but after the difficulties Porsche suffered with consistent reliability of the mid-70s models the SC did return the marque to its heralded status and, along with its successor the 3.2 Carrera, cemented the 911 as Porsche’s top dog. That wasn’t always destined to be the case.

The one we see here, a Slate Blue Metallic 1983 Porsche 911SC Coupe located in Los Angeles, fits into my reasonably priced parameters more in theory than in current practice. The BIN price is on the high end and it’ll need to come down before we can truly consider this a good value. But as current bidding on this auction suggests, its true value should be a good bit below this BIN price so with some patience we should get there.

True, 2 owner car – this car is better than a barn find; it was meticulously cared for throughout the years Was kept indoors and only driven on sunny days since the mid 1980’s. Look at the pictures closely, it is nearly impossible to find a car so original, and in this condition.

After yesterday’s South African 500SE, this 200 Turbo is an interesting counterpoint for several reasons. First, if the age is correct, it’s from the very beginning of Type 44 production. In fact, it wasn’t until September 1983 that the turbocharged variant of the new Type 44 – the 200 – was available for the marketplace. So this car represents the beginning of the run compared to yesterday’s run-ending 500SE.

What’s amazing to me is how little change there was in that period. Outside of the interior refresh, a slightly different exterior color and some small details, the 1983 and 1990 model years could pass for contemporaries. Try that in other model ranges today! Of course, one other reason this car is interesting is the turbo. This would be an early 2.1 liter unit, rated nominally at 182 horsepower – a healthy bit more power than the late NF motor (130 horsepower). What’s unusual in this case is that it’s mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. Of course, these were the days before the quattro drive setup moved into other models outside of the halo Quattro, so you’re stuck with a front-driver only.

Oh, and one more oddity? Well, it’s being sold in the U.K., but it’s left hand drive.

I do love a 911SC in a good color. The 911SC represents my first exposure to Porsche. It was the car my dad owned when I was a kid. As such, the model has always held a firm place in my heart. While I frequently will become attracted to later models I continue to be drawn back to the SC. Admittedly, it helps that these remain entrenched on the more reasonable value side of the 911 spectrum, but even when the rare low-mileage, and quite expensive, example comes along I can totally understand the allure.

This one here comes from the final year of their production: a Ruby Red Metallic 1983 Porsche 911SC Coupe, located in Alabama, with Tan interior and 105,592 miles on it.

Like yesterday’s Conda Green 911T, this Kiln Red 1983 Porsche 911SC Coupe provides a chance for me to revisit a color I had only recently come across for the first time. Back in March this Kiln Red 3.2 Carrera came up for sale (and is still for sale). With its very low miles and excellent condition the price was very high. This 911SC presents us with a much more reasonably priced option, but the condition remains quite good. It’s not quite as pristine, especially in the interior, but I actually would prefer this color combination to that of the Carrera, and with just over 71K miles on it there’s still a ton of life left in this SC. And unlike the 27K mile Carrera you can spend plenty of time behind the wheel of this SC enjoying the sound of that air-cooled six without worrying those extra miles will negatively affect its long term value. Winner!

Super clean 1983 911 sc coupe in Kiln Red metallic(looks like bronze and lighter in person). Complete car and all original with no modifications. Runs and drives great, pulls strong, transmission and gears are smooth with no grinding. Body is straight with no dings, dents or scratches. Everything seems to be in working order except for sunroof, it seems to work intermittently. Interior is all original except for radio and in excellent shape. Some normal wear on drivers seat bolster and very small hole on passenger seat, dash is free of any cracks. Very honest car that just needs a new owner. Feel free to call with any questions 917-282-3896.

For those on the market for either an early 3.2 Carrera or the very similar 911SC I think this 911 would be well worth investigating further.…

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